--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: To understand what we mean when we say…" description: "\"“To understand what we mean when we say that space is discrete, we must put our minds completely into the relational way of thinking, and really try to..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/265/lee-smolin-4171_discrete_to-understand-what-we-mean-when-we-say-t_1414988.jpg" --- # To understand what we mean when we say that space is… ![“To understand what we mean when we say that space is discrete, we must put our minds completely into the relational way of thinking, and really try to see and feel the world around us as nothing but a network of evolving relationships. These relationships are not among things situated in space…” quote by Lee Smolin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/265/lee-smolin-4171_discrete_to-understand-what-we-mean-when-we-say-t_1414988.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/265/lee-smolin-4171_discrete_to-understand-what-we-mean-when-we-say-t_1414988.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/265/lee-smolin-4171_discrete_to-understand-what-we-mean-when-we-say-t_1414988.jpg) > ““To understand what we mean when we say that space is discrete, we must put our minds completely into the relational way of thinking, and really try to see and feel the world around us as nothing but a network of evolving relationships. These relationships are not among things situated in space - they are among the events that make up the history of the world. The relationships define the space, not the other way around.”” [Lee Smolin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-smolin/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Space emerges from relational events; it is defined by connections, not by pre‑existing emptiness. **In simple terms:** Space is a network of relationships, not a backdrop. Key Takeaway Explore relational thinking to understand reality. Themes physics philosophy relationalism space network theory Mood curious intellectual speculative Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - scientific research - education curricula - technological design Key Concepts quantum gravity ontology systems thinking Questions to Reflect On - How does seeing space relationally change scientific practice? - What implications does this have for technology? A Different Perspective Relational view may conflict with intuitive, object‑centric models. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Define Space](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/define-space-4996710/) [Discrete](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/discrete/) [Discrete Minds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/discrete-minds-4996712/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) [Situated Space](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/situated-space-4996711/) [Space](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/space/) [Space Discrete](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/space-discrete-1567293/) [Way of thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way-of-thinking/) ## Related quotes > [“if physics is much simpler to describe under the assumption that space is discrete, rather than continuous, is not this fact itself a strong…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-smolin/if-physics-is-much-simpler-to-describe-under-the-assumption-that/) [Lee Smolin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-smolin/) > [Winning has a joy and discrete purity to it that cannot be replaced by anything else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-bartlett-giamatti/winning-has-a-joy-and-discrete-purity-to-it-that-cannot-be-replaced/) [A. Bartlett Giamatti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-bartlett-giamatti/) > [The full beauty of the subject of generating functions emerges only from tuning in on both channels: the discrete and the continuous.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-wilf/the-full-beauty-of-the-subject-of-generating-functions-emerges-only/) [Herbert Wilf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-wilf/) > [The whole drift of my education goes to persuade me that the world of our present consciousness is only one out of many worlds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-james/the-whole-drift-of-my-education-goes-to-persuade-me-that-the-world-of/) [William James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-james/) > [Put down the weight of your aloneness and ease into the conversation. Pay attention to everything in the world as if it's alive. 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In a particle theory, you can freely add all kinds of forces, so there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-smolin/this-unification-of-forces-and-motion-has-a-simple-consequence-in-a/) [Lee Smolin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-smolin/) > [“One field Faraday studied was the electric field. This is not a number but a vector, which we may visualize as an arrow and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-smolin/one-field-faraday-studied-was-the-electric-field-this-is-not-a-number/) [Lee Smolin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-smolin/) > [“It is interesting to note that the quantum-mechanical revolution was made by a virtually orphaned generation of scientists. Many members of the generation above…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-smolin/it-is-interesting-to-note-that-the-quantum-mechanical-revolution-was/) [Lee Smolin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-smolin/) > [“In fact, the particle-antiparticle annihilation and the closing of the string is necessary, if the theory is to be consistent with relativity, meaning the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-smolin/in-fact-the-particle-antiparticle-annihilation-and-the-closing-of-the/) [Lee Smolin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-smolin/) > [Every string theory that's been written down says the speed of light is universal. But other ideas about quantum gravity predict the speed of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-smolin/every-string-theory-that-s-been-written-down-says-the-speed-of-light/) [Lee Smolin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-smolin/) > [“Unfortunately, no one has ever successfully postulated a super-symmetry holding between two known particles. 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They started with a much-studied kind of string theory-a flat four-dimensional spacetime with a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-smolin/here-s-a-simplified-version-of-what-the-stanford-group-did-they/) [Lee Smolin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-smolin/) > [“The current crisis in particle physics springs from the fact that the theories have gone beyond the standard model in the last thirty years…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-smolin/the-current-crisis-in-particle-physics-springs-from-the-fact-that-the/) [Lee Smolin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-smolin/) > [“By the time I began my study of physics in the early 1970s, the idea of unifying gravity with the other forces was as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-smolin/by-the-time-i-began-my-study-of-physics-in-the-early-1970s-the-idea/) [Lee Smolin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-smolin/) > [“These two discoveries, of relativity and of the quantum, each required us to break definitively with Newtonian physics. However, in spite of great progress…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-smolin/these-two-discoveries-of-relativity-and-of-the-quantum-each-required/) [Lee Smolin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-smolin/) > [“So the challenge for any quantum theory of gravity is to give us a deeper understanding of Bekenstein's entropy and Hawking's temperature.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-smolin/so-the-challenge-for-any-quantum-theory-of-gravity-is-to-give-us-a/) [Lee Smolin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-smolin/) > [“Problem 1: Combine general relativity and quantum theory into a single theory that can claim to be the complete theory of nature. This is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-smolin/problem-1-combine-general-relativity-and-quantum-theory-into-a-single/) [Lee Smolin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-smolin/) > [“The loop approach to quantum gravity is now a thriving field of research. Many of the older ideas, such as supergravity and the study…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-smolin/the-loop-approach-to-quantum-gravity-is-now-a-thriving-field-of/) [Lee Smolin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-smolin/) > [“During the life of a black hole, it will pull in huge amounts of matter, carrying huge amounts of intrinsic information. At the end,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-smolin/during-the-life-of-a-black-hole-it-will-pull-in-huge-amounts-of/) [Lee Smolin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-smolin/) [Explore all 114 Lee Smolin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-smolin/) ## More Discrete quotes > [Winning has a joy and discrete purity to it that cannot be replaced by anything else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-bartlett-giamatti/winning-has-a-joy-and-discrete-purity-to-it-that-cannot-be-replaced/) [A. Bartlett Giamatti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-bartlett-giamatti/) > [The books remind us that way down deep in our hearts, part of us knows that we are creatures of light and we cannot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-bach/the-books-remind-us-that-way-down-deep-in-our-hearts-part-of-us-knows/) [Richard Bach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-bach/) > [Chi-Os were ideal partners for all occasions. They were discrete, desirable, tactful, polite, and fun... Every mom dreamed of her son coming home with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-letterman/chi-os-were-ideal-partners-for-all-occasions-they-were-discrete/) [David Letterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-letterman/) > [A discrete series is a series of terms each of which is empirically derived, each one of which is empirically true. And this is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-oppen/a-discrete-series-is-a-series-of-terms-each-of-which-is-empirically/) [George Oppen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-oppen/) > [I have no faith in our hypocritical, false, hysterical, uneducated and lazy intelligentsia when they suffer and complain: their oppression comes from within. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anton-chekhov/i-have-no-faith-in-our-hypocritical-false-hysterical-uneducated-and/) [Anton Chekhov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anton-chekhov/) > [The mastery of one's phonemes may be compared to the violinist's mastery of fingering. The violin string lends itself to a continuous gradation of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willard-van-orman-quine/the-mastery-of-one-s-phonemes-may-be-compared-to-the-violinist-s/) [Willard Van Orman Quine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willard-van-orman-quine/) > [With ordinary men the moments which are united in a close continuity out of the original discrete multiplicity are very few, and the course…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-weininger/with-ordinary-men-the-moments-which-are-united-in-a-close-continuity/) [Otto Weininger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-weininger/) > [Life is a constant creation. It is a moment by moment, instant by instant creation. I don’t mean by this that it is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-low/life-is-a-constant-creation-it-is-a-moment-by-moment-instant-by/) [Albert Low](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-low/) > [Know what makes a sentence more than a random list, practice constructing sentences and explaining what you have done, and you will know how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-fish/know-what-makes-a-sentence-more-than-a-random-list-practice/) [Stanley Fish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-fish/) > [Time, among all concepts in the world of physics, puts up the greatest resistance to being dethroned from ideal continuum to the world of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-archibald-wheeler/time-among-all-concepts-in-the-world-of-physics-puts-up-the-greatest/) [John Archibald Wheeler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-archibald-wheeler/) > [Put down the weight of your aloneness and ease into the conversation. Pay attention to everything in the world as if it's alive. Realize…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-whyte/put-down-the-weight-of-your-aloneness-and-ease-into-the-conversation-2/) [David Whyte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-whyte/) > [The whole drift of my education goes to persuade me that the world of our present consciousness is only one out of many worlds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-james/the-whole-drift-of-my-education-goes-to-persuade-me-that-the-world-of/) [William James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-james/) > [The full beauty of the subject of generating functions emerges only from tuning in on both channels: the discrete and the continuous.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-wilf/the-full-beauty-of-the-subject-of-generating-functions-emerges-only/) [Herbert Wilf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-wilf/) > [“if physics is much simpler to describe under the assumption that space is discrete, rather than continuous, is not this fact itself a strong…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-smolin/if-physics-is-much-simpler-to-describe-under-the-assumption-that/) [Lee Smolin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-smolin/) > [If you must be indiscrete, be discrete in your indiscretion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/if-you-must-be-indiscrete-be-discrete-in-your-indiscretion/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) [Browse all 43 Discrete quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/discrete/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“To understand what we mean when we say that space is discrete, we must put our minds completely into the relational way of thinking, and really try to see and feel the world around us as nothing but a network of evolving relationships. 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